FRONTLINE: Dropout Nation

Shown: Sharpstown High School graduation ceremony, June 3, 2012, Houston, Texas. Of the 455 students who entered the class as freshmen, 217 made it to graduation.

Credit: Courtesy of FRONTLINE

Witness a high-stakes experiment to rescue students prepared to quit high school without a diploma. 

What does it take to save a student? Every year, hundreds of thousands of teenagers in the United States quit high school without diplomas — an epidemic so out of control that nobody knows the exact number. What is clear is that massive dropout rates cripple individual career prospects and cloud the country’s future. At Houston’s Sharpstown High, once a notorious “dropout factory,” a high-stakes experiment is underway to rescue students from the edge. FRONTLINE spent a semester immersed in Sharpstown High to produce an unforgettable portrait of four students in crisis and the teachers, counselors and principal waging a daily, personal struggle to get them to graduation. A troubling and inspiring journey through the maze of an inner-city high school, “Dropout Nation," airing Tuesday, September 25 at 9 p.m. on WXXI-TV/HD (DT21.1/cable 1011 and 11), investigates the causes, challenges, and potential solutions of a national emergency.

With 1.3 million students dropping out of high school every year, the need for an in-depth examination into this crisis is crucial. That’s why WXXI is dedicated to building awareness of the national and local issues that have led to this alarming dropout rate and to help our community find solutions to ensure a greater number of graduates in the future.

The centerpiece of this initiative is this Frontline special.  In addition, WXXI is joining with PBS and CPB to declare September 22 American Graduate Day and will broadcast seven hours of special programming on the dropout rate and how to keep kids in school. Beginning at 1 p.m., WXXI-TV/HD, WXXI-World, and City 12 presents half-hour segment featuring special celebrity guests, relevant spokespeople and compelling stories from students. The last three hours of the marathon (from 4-7pm) will finish up on WXXI-World and City 12 (WXXI-TV/HD will resume regular programming at 4 p.m.).

Leading up to the premiere of Dropout Nation, WXXI News and Innovation Trail will file reports on the subject, and AM 1370 will bring listeners radio specials on the topic. 

Local support for the American Graduate Initiative and this broadcast is made possible by Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection, preparing students for graduation, college, and a career.

Watch Dropout Nation Preview on PBS. See more from FRONTLINE.